Annals of oncology : official journal of the European Society for Medical Oncology
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Neoadjuvant bevacizumab and anthracycline-taxane-based chemotherapy in 678 triple-negative primary breast cancers; results from the geparquinto study (GBG 44).
We evaluated the pathological complete response (pCR) rate after neoadjuvant epirubicin, (E) cyclophosphamide (C) and docetaxel containing chemotherapy with and without the addition of bevacizumab in patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). ⋯ The addition of bevacizumab to chemotherapy in TNBC significantly increases pCR rates.
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Opioid analgesics are critical to the effective relief of cancer pain. Effective treatment is predicated on sound assessments, individually tailored analgesic therapy, and the availability and accessibility of the required medications. ⋯ This project has been undertaken in collaboration with the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), the Pain and Policy Studies Group (PPSG) of the University of Wisconsin, and the World Health Organization (WHO), together with a consortium of 17 international oncology and palliative care societies. This article describes the study methodology.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
HER2 in high-risk rectal cancer patients treated in EXPERT-C, a randomized phase II trial of neoadjuvant capecitabine and oxaliplatin (CAPOX) and chemoradiotherapy (CRT) with or without cetuximab.
HER2 is an established therapeutic target in breast and gastric cancers. The role of HER2 in rectal cancer is unclear, as conflicting data on the prevalence of HER2 expression in this disease have been reported. We evaluated the prevalence of HER2 and its impact on the outcome of high-risk rectal cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant CAPOX and CRT±cetuximab in the EXPERT-C trial. ⋯ Based on the low prevalence of expression as recorded in the EXPERT-C trial, HER2 does not appear to represent a useful therapeutic target in high-risk rectal cancer. However, the role of HER2 as a potential predictive biomarker of resistance to anti-EGFR-based treatments and a therapeutic target in anti-EGFR refractory metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) warrants further investigation.
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The Middle East is a heterogeneous region with substantial variability in social development, wealth and palliative care development. The region has few democracies, strong but diverse religious affiliations, and many of the region's counties are involved in political upheavals or regional conflicts. While the global consumption of opioids has increased throughout the last 30 years, there has been little increase in opioid consumption in the Middle East. ⋯ Formulary deficiencies are severe in several countries in particular Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Palestine and Tunisia. Even when opioids are on formulary, they are often unavailable, particularly in these same countries. Access is also significantly impaired by widespread over-regulation that is pervasive across the region.
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Gross total but not incomplete resection of glioblastoma prolongs survival in the era of radiochemotherapy.
This prospective multicenter study assessed the prognostic influence of the extent of resection when compared with biopsy only in a contemporary patient population with newly diagnosed glioblastoma. ⋯ The value of incomplete resection remains questionable. If GTR cannot be safely achieved, biopsy only might be used as an alternative surgical strategy.